James Gurney

This daily weblog by Dinotopia creator James Gurney is for illustrators, plein-air painters, sketchers, comic artists, animators, art students, and writers. You'll find practical studio tips, insights into the making of the Dinotopia books, and first-hand reports from art schools and museums.

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or by email:gurneyjourney (at) gmail.comSorry, I can't give personal art advice or portfolio reviews. If you can, it's best to ask art questions in the blog comments.

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All images and text are copyright 2015 James Gurney and/or their respective owners. Dinotopia is a registered trademark of James Gurney. For use of text or images in traditional print media or for any commercial licensing rights, please email me for permission.

However, you can quote images or text without asking permission on your educational or non-commercial blog, website, or Facebook page as long as you give me credit and provide a link back. Students and teachers can also quote images or text for their non-commercial school activity. It's also OK to do an artistic copy of my paintings as a study exercise without asking permission.

Thursday, February 14, 2013

This picture of Oriana and Arthur is from Dinotopia: The World Beneath (1995), oil on board. The book, republished with a new "making of" section in the back, is available from Amazon or signed from my web store.

I actually reread "The World Beneath" recently (any Dinotopia volume is a great imagination stimulator when you're running low) and so I recognized this painting immediately! I always thought the final lines of the book were so beautiful... a perfect ending.

I've just recently bought Land Apart From Time and The World Beneath 20th anniversary editions. I'm looking forward to getting them in.

I can remember clearly the day I received the first book. I was nine years old and my best friend's mother was a manager at a Waldenbooks at the local mall, and she got my friend and I copies of the book on the day it went for sale. He read it and devoured it. I did the same, but I practically destroyed the book by taking it everywhere with me trying to draw things from the books along with my own creations.

I still have that tattered book without any pages missing that looks like it's been through the ringer. I have no interest in getting rid of it. When I was older I bought myself another pristine copy. Looks like I'm about to have a third!